


Alone in a Bar for Veronica, The Cindy MacKenzie Story

by Querulousgawks



Category: Veronica Mars (Movie 2014), Veronica Mars (TV), Veronica Mars - All Media Types
Genre: Drinking alone, Friendship, Gen, Nice Guys, Post-Series Pre-Movie, comeuppances followed by guilt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-25
Updated: 2014-03-25
Packaged: 2018-01-16 23:21:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1365466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Querulousgawks/pseuds/Querulousgawks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wallace and Mac are working a case together, but she's the one stuck sitting in this bar with a Nice Guy and a herd of Dick clones across the room.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Alone in a Bar for Veronica, The Cindy MacKenzie Story

It’s not the worst thing she's had to do for a Veronica case, spend an evening alone in the 09er. (She lists the worsts quickly, to comfort herself: went to prom with Butters, almost got naked for vegans, switched some poor bastard's laptop to Microsoft  _Vista_. This is fine.) The drinks are on expenses, maybe, and the people watching should be great. But she's got a nervous feeling in her stomach, a certain grim anticipation. She doesn't like to be alone in places that operate like high school.

And now the reason why is coming towards her, shoved out of a pack of 09er beach bums, all but this one pulling off revoltingly expensive scruffiness. He has the strut kind of geek walk, cringing even as he thrusts his chest out. Good bones, bad acne, a sweet smile soured by an already-resentful quirk. They are always shoved in her direction and when she’s alone she is always too accommodating and she’s ashamed of it and she _hates_ this. There's nowhere to go.

“Diet coke, right? Probably for the best, considering.” His voice almost cracks, and Mac closes her eyes. It’s time she learned to do this herself, anyway. "Sit down." She snaps it and he swallows, bravado deserting him with the end of his rehearsed line, about to glance back at the smirking surfers at the bar. "No. Don’t look at them. Never say that to a person again. Whoever told you you were unattractive enough to need a line like that? _They were not your friend._ " He gapes. This is what Veronica thinks is worth it: the poleaxed look of an asshole getting his due. Except the real bullies never come to her table, only their victims, and she’d rather be saving than avenging but that’s - never mind. She sees Wallace signalling in the door, and checks the scanner program on her phone. Nothing: the mark isn’t coming tonight. Time to finish her lesson in life skills.

“Never mind," she says aloud, "don’t sit down. We are leaving together, so your shitty friends don’t win, and you are going to back off as soon as we get outside, ok?” Guilt and hope flash over his face but at her glare he nods, meek. 

Wallace raises an eyebrow as they come through the door and she realizes she is half-dragging this guy, drops his elbow. "Good night. Next time try introducing yourself," she says tiredly.  His glare flicks between her and Wallace.

"I guess this is your _real_ type,” he mutters, and her expression must click over from guilt to flamethrower because he catches himself. “Right. Backing off.” Then he’s striding away, as humiliated as if she hadn’t intervened, and this probably is her least favorite thing, after all. 

"Look at you! Training up the geeks, now, Hitch?" Wallace is immune to the flamethrower expression, he’s barely suppressing laughter. She turns away, digging for something light to say.

"My own personal army. Think he’s a contender?" Her inner Veronica has deserted her, though, and when he slings an arm around her shoulder she ends up telling him the truth, "The Dicks at the bar sent him over, probably on a bet.” 

Wallace grins at the pun, but then he’s giving her a sideways look, too knowing. She shouldn’t have told him, probably, about Dick and Beaver. Gotten herself on the list of people he worries about.

"Can’t save ‘em all, MacKenzie," he says gently, but she just shakes her head and leans on him, silent and grateful as they walk home.


End file.
